Kent State’s College of Podiatric Medicine Is on a Secure Footing
The Podiatry Foundation, located in Independence, Ohio, has made a $10 million donation to Kent State University to fund scholarships, research and continuing medical education programs within the Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine. The foundation recently approved a lump-sum gift of $5 million and has pledged $250,000 annually for the next 20 years to support the college.
In recognition of this gift, the current clinical space on the first floor of the college, which is also located in Independence, will be named The Podiatry Foundation Foot and Ankle Clinic. Any auxiliary spaces associated with the clinic, including the clinical space in Cleveland’s MidTown neighborhood, will also bear this name.
“A gift of this magnitude is transformational to the future education of our podiatry students, not only through our ability to award more scholarships, but also because of the increased credibility that will come from our enhanced research and continuing medical education,” says Kent State President Todd Diacon. “The longstanding relationship between the college and The Podiatry Foundation has been instrumental in Kent State’s recognition as a leading college in the important field of foot and ankle medicine. We are very grateful for their visionary support.”
The Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine, one of nine accredited podiatry colleges in the United States, is a four-year, graduate-level medical college, granting the degree of Doctor of Podiatric Medicine. The college’s mission is to educate students to be highly competent doctors of podiatric medicine who will excel in residency training.
“We must be able to support these high-achieving future doctors through scholarships to ensure our field has enough qualified practitioners in the future,” says Allan Boike, DPM, FACFAS, the college’s dean. “Additionally, the support for our research and continuing medical education allows us opportunities to grow our national reputation as a best-in-class medical research and educational institution.”
At least one of the scholarships created through this gift will be named the Thomas V. Melillo Scholarship. Thomas Melillo, DPM, was president of the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine (now the Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine), from 1984 through 2012, when the merger with Kent State took place.
In July 2012, as part of the merger, a foundation was established for charitable and educational purposes. Since 2019 the foundation has done business as The Podiatry Foundation, whose purpose is to serve and nurture education and research in podiatric medicine. Since its inception, the foundation has assisted many national, state and local podiatric medical organizations as well as students and residents in the Greater Cleveland area.
“This gift is the culmination of several years of dialogue between the foundation and the university,” says David Nicolanti, PhD, executive director of The Podiatry Foundation. “It will help to secure the financial strength of this important local institution.”
Founded in 1916 as the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine, the college has graduated more than 6,000 podiatrists who have made outstanding contributions to the field and study of podiatric medicine. In addition, the Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine has regional and national affiliations with more than 50 hospitals worldwide and more than 300 private practitioners nationwide that provide externship training to the college’s students. Currently, the college maintains an average four-year enrollment of 425 students and typically graduates 85-100 podiatrists each year.